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So... that still remains a completely absurd and stupid remark by Christopher Wood, a leader of the LGBT Technology Partnership. What does the LGBT Tech Partnership even do? I'm not really sure. They're a pro-gay organization, of course (but those are a dime a dozen), dedicated to spreading the usage of communications technology throughout the gay community. You can read about them if you want, but according to them, they're important. So... if such an important gay group is bullying Nintendo with such an obviously absurd comment, I think they should apologize to Nintendo. That kind of talk isn't right, and even other pro-gay people should be able to see that.

Recently, one of your leaders, Christopher Wood, representing your organization went on a BBC talk show. He said something to the likes of, "[Nintendo's] Tomodachi Life is eerily similar to that of Uganda where half a million people live under the threat of imprisonment, and torture, and execution. Or Brunei, where they just passed a law for gay and lesbian people to be stoned." That type of discourse is completely counterproductive and slanderous. Comparing Nintendo, the videogame-making company, to the governments of Uganda and Brunei is absolutely absurd and outrageous. The organization I represent, KoopaTV (you can look us up if you want), would like for a statement from Mr. Wood. That statement should include an apology to Nintendo for this disgusting display of rudeness, that really takes the discussion backwards. It can be just to us when you reply to this message, and we'll publish it to the world, or it can be a public one (in which case we'll still republish it to the world). We at KoopaTV support a debate of ideas without this inflammatory rhetoric attached, because that rhetoric does nothing to support your cause.

Sincerely,

Ludwig Von Koopa

KoopaTV

The same day we sent that, this blog post from the LGBT Technology Partnership was uploaded. It obviously was not a coincidence, considering the exact same BBC appearance was referenced in that and applauded for its content. Keep in mind the BBC thing happened two weeks before May 22. Supposedly, they "appreciate your message and will reply shortly." But they wrote a blog post instead. Okay, we'll take that as their response. Let's look at some of the inane things from that blog post.

"Videogames are an increasingly important tool for identity negotiation and community building. Especially for LGBT gamers in less accepting regions and nations, these games may be one of only few safe platforms allowing them to connect with other LGBT individuals. Further, the representation of LGBT individuals in videogames and other pop culture channels is critical in shaping the larger societal understanding of the community."

Let's think for a moment about Tomodachi Life. Does this apply to Tomodachi Life? No. It does not. There is no in-game online community with it. It's all the Miis in your Plaza on a virtual island doing crazy stuff. There is no platforms connecting individual players. There would be no social understanding based off Tomodachi Life besides gay Miis hitting on your Mii and you trying to get your Mii to object those homosexual advances. ...I guess that's one way to shape societal understanding.

Now imagine this except the Miis are of the same gender.

They then mentioned and idolized videogame industry villains Electronic Arts for having homosexuality in The Sims (and apparently making the mistake in thinking that Tomodachi Life is a life simulator). Then they said,

"Calling for virtual equality, we also need to bear in mind that diversity goes beyond the inclusion of gay and lesbian characters. Game developers also need to become more aware that gender identity is more complex than the binary of male and female. Developing avatars that represent diversity both in respect to sexual orientation and gender identity, we may come a step closer to virtual equality and provide LGBT gamers with critical platforms for identity negotiation and community building."

NOW the Miis shouldn't just be a binary male and female option... it should be a sliding scale! And apparently that brings equality. How is it equal? I'm not entirely sure! Equal to what? Equal about what? What are you people even talking about? They are literally just spouting nonsense talking points and buzzwords without thinking about what they're saying. Representing all this mythical diversity apparently creates "virtual equality." Equality in representation? Well, no, it's not an equal 50-50 thing. I don't think it ever would be. And if you have to represent an infinite spectrum of gender identities, how do you equally represent infinity? Facebook now has 56 "gender identity" options. How do you represent all of those in a videogame, and represent them to some standard of equality? Equality in rights? There's no such concept as rights in a videogame. Rights do not come from for-profit businesses, people! Equality in opportunity? Everyone is already equal in opportunity to make a Mii and play on the island and roleplay however creatively they choose. The gay movement wants artistic expression to be destroyed by burdening game developers with a standard set of nonsensical regulations, or else they will be bullied into submission.

.@chrisbwood LGBT ppl in countries that discriminate use game avatars to safely connect w/ one another and with their community. #wiiquality
— LGBT Tech (@LGBTTech) May 8, 2014

These people are completely detached from reality.They didn't even get the hashtag right.

Guess they can't follow directions.

They think they're doing the world this fantastic favour by taking their gay mafia tactics and injecting it into the videogame industry. They have no idea what they're talking about. Except these ignorant bullies are extremely dangerous and influential.
And in case you read this and agree with the premise of what these bullies are spouting, go read up on what Uganda did and compare it to Nintendo's product. Go read the details of what Shariah Law entails. Is Nintendo doing that? Obviously, we don't think so. Does Nintendo put people in similar situations as victims of Shariah Law? Of course not. You can voluntarily purchase Tomodachi Life or not purchase it. In countries with Shariah Law, there is no voluntarism. It's antithetical to freedom. It's evil. Nintendo is not evil.

The logic, "you're not allowed to be gay in Tomodachi Life is just like not being allowed to be gay in Uganda or Brunei" is ridiculous. It's insulting to gay people. You might not want to apologize to Nintendo because you think they're some heartless corporation, but at least apologize to the gay community. Those types of remarks marginalize the gay community, by equating true evil with not being able to make your male Mii pregnant in a quirky E-rated videogame. Why don't you go ask a gay dude in a Shariah Law country if what Nintendo is doing is like the conditions they suffer under? Go on, ask them. Especially one in life imprisonment or death row. After all, you claim to represent the gay community, so you should go talk with them instead of bullshitting the world with your liberal academic crap. You lot are complete frauds.

Miis are not supposed to be you. Your fate is not determined by this limited character. You don't suddenly become a straight person because a Mii named after you marries a woman (if you're a dude). And if the patronizing of Christopher Wood is correct, and gay people are these super-depressed and constantly alarmed sex-obsessed folk who are desperately need virtual avatars of themselves to explore their sexual fantasies, then you can... kind of do that anyway. You just need to do an easy workaround. And workarounds help add to the game experience by making it more personal. Working for something makes it all the better when you achieve it. I know that from experience.

By the way, Tomodachi Life comes out June 6 in North America.

Ludwig at one point used Miis to roleplay fantasies he had in the Mii Making channel on the Wii, but he'll never discuss that further. Follow him at NNID PrinceOfKoopas on Miiverse, if you want. He won't be getting Tomodachi Life.

7 comments
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Can't say I'm surprised anymore. Those who follow their agenda tend to use hyperbole to attract attention even where there's no link between the two ideas There are people who used to be neutral on LGBT issues but seeing as they pretty much bully everyone that disagrees with them and exaggerate everything, they've lost respect for them which will then resort to them getting more aggressive with their bullying to create a culture of fear and creating their brand of "tolerance". They are so caught up in their own agenda that they can't see anything else anymore and lose their ability to see reason.

Woooow. Disgusting. Nintendo definitely isn't like Uganda or wtf ever, but wow you guys must have a lot of friends. "omfg people are challenging the f*cked up structure we "normal" straight cis ppl have set up. How dare they! They're so pushy and intolerant! How dare they want equal rights and representation. How DARE they want to be able to recreate their lives in this game that revolves around the point of RECREATING YOUR LIFE. Also, there really isn't a neutral position. You either think that gay people and other LGBT people are humans and deserve the same frickin' rights as everyone else, or you don't. I feel like screaming. "Bullying"? How many gay and trans people are murdered DAILY just for being gay or trans? Now, how many people are murdered AT ALL just cause they're straight? Or cis? Hm? NONE? WOW. WHAT a surprise! I can't believe it. Stop trying to mask your homophobia and act like decent human beings.

The point of the game is not recreating your life, unless you live in some alternative, whacky, and strange dimension where all sorts of weird stuff happens. If you're trying to just recreate your life, you're approaching Tomodachi Life wrong. It's about off-the-wall insanity. The kind you don't have access to in real life. Therefore, the conventions of real life do not apply to the world of Tomodachi Life. That's the whole premise of the game!

By the way, heterosexual people don't refer to ourselves as "cis".

If you read the article, I'm clearly against Shariah Law, which condones said murder for just being gay or trans. I'm against that. That said, marriage is not a "right", and virtual marriage in a videogame is certainly not a "right". We're all for equal rights for everyone. Which is why I wrote an article mentioning how you guys are approaching this entire situation wrong (speaking strictly from America), and should be going for this inequality propagated by the government in the form of the tax code. Nintendo can be neutral because they're not making a statement about gay rights.

http://koopatv.blogspot.com/2014/05/john-oliver-disgusts-world.html

That's a lot more productive than going after Nintendo, and a lot better for society than trying to obliterate the traditional family structure. And a lot more coherent than comparing Nintendo to Uganda.

That last part does nothing to help anyone, and I'm glad you agree. Which is why you should get your own house in order and make sure you guys are all unified before going after other people, and subjecting private business owners to sensitivity training or whatever. Get your priorities straight.

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